Government could come after you for unpaid e-tolls
A recent Parliamentary Q&A has revealed that the Gauteng government could still be coming after motorists for unpaid e-toll bills.
In addressing concerns over the delays and confusion regarding the end of e-tolls in Gauteng, Democratic Alliance’s Dennis Ryder asked Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana why the gantries have not been turned off.
In response, Godongwana said the gantries would only be turned off once a binding agreement is signed between the Gauteng Provincial Government and the National Government on the province’s financial commitments to paying off the debt.
He added that the outstanding issues related to the signing of a binding agreement are as follows:
- The provincial funding sources for the backlog maintenance and rehabilitation of the network and the duration over which this will be done; and
- Clarity on the province’s position and the costs associated with recovering funds from defaulting road users who have not paid tolls while the system was operational.
This suggests that road users who did not pay their e-toll accounts over the course of the last ten years might be liable to settle their debts before the scheme is shut down.
Godongwana’s statement is clear evidence that the Gauteng provincial government had backtracked on its initial proposal in January 2023, when it stated that compliant users would be refunded.
“It’s clear we have to refund people. We will refund people who have paid. The outstanding debate is the manner in which they will be refunded,” said Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi.
Lesufi added that the government was still mulling whether or not it would be a cash refund or a refund that will credit road users so they can avoid paying any other tolls or services until the money is paid up.
This seems to have been taken off the table completely, and motorists now face the potential of footing their unpaid bills on top of the debt and interest obligations promised to the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) by the government.
During the 2022 medium-term budget speech (MTBPS), Godongwana announced that the Gauteng provincial government and national government collectively agreed to contribute 30% and 70%, respectively, to service Sanral’s debt and interest obligations, which includes e-tolls, after which the gantries will be decommissioned.
The MTBPS 2022 provided an additional R27.476 billion for Sanral: R3.740 billion through the Adjustments Appropriation Act 2022 specifically for the GFIP and R23.736 billion through the Special Appropriation Act 2022 for Sanral’s debt redemption fund.
In February 2023, Budget 2023 included another R2.2 billion for the GFIP, and the Transport vote referred to the R23.736 billion received through the MTBPS towards the Sanral debt as “a partial solution” to the GFIP debt, with no clear explanation of that debt.
A year after the initial announcement, however, e-tolls are still billing motorists on a daily basis, and their payment collections contract has been extended into December 2023, Sanral recently confirmed.
However, The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) CEO Wayne Duvenage noted that the e-toll compliance rate has plummeted to around 10%. “The public is not fooled anymore. They are not paying,” he said.
Apart from a few corporate organisations, he said nobody is paying for e-tolls. “They are the people keeping it on life support,” Duvenage said.
“If these organisations come to the party and do what everyone else is doing, the government would be forced to scrap the e-toll scheme,” he added. Duvenage has called on companies supporting e-tolls to show moral courage and stop keeping the system alive.
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